Prelude
Sylvester Stallone was rejected 1,500 times when he selling the movie script with himself as “Rocky”
Now, that’s a lot of rejection before a victory!
Drawing inspiration from the man himself, I wanted to outline the rejections we typically face in B2B sales and the options we have to deal with them.
7 Type of Common Rejections
Considering the fact that prospects are masters of resistance, the most vital task is to overcome their objections. This has been proven to be frustrating at times. Let’s look at ways you can overcome some of the most common sales objections that prevent your prospects from buying RIGHT NOW!
Here are some valuable tips to deal with them.
1. Price/Budget
Objection: “Your product is too pricey. I can get similar benefits from a cheaper alternative!”
Quick Tip: If you drive the sales discussion only on price, there are very good chances that the customer’s focal point would remain price and will haggle.
Response Options:
- Break down the total cost into smaller amounts, in that way it does not look like a huge investment
- Focus on your product’s unique value and its benefits <– This is very critical!
- Have your stats ready for justifying your price vs the price of your competitors
- Your solution/product benefits should be spot on
- Be creative and split an invoice in two, for example – charging the customer for the software in March and the maintenance in April. Sometimes when payments split, the order fits better into their quarterly budgets
What Your Goal Bust Be: Ensure that you portray the value exceeds the price you quoted by 75%
2. Call Me Back in a Quarter
Objection: “This is probably not the right time to decide. Call me back in a quarter.”
Quick Tip: This is doublespeak. They mean to be soft on you and not be “that guy” who said no. These words sound positive and you might even believe them. They don’t want to buy.
Response Options:
- Make the customer be specific. “Thanks for letting me know that next quarter is better for you. What date would you want to place the order?”
- Or, “I would be happy to call you back. Would Monday, October 11th at 10:00 in the morning work for you?”
- You can ask: “Will anything change till the next quarter” Once the prospect assures you that they want to do business with you, you can respond with: “Great! Let’s get in touch a week before the next quarter and we can have the ball rolling”. If they do not intend to get back then he is just trying to get away from the situation
3. I Am Not the Decision-Maker, Need to Check With My CEO
Objection: “I need to check with my boss/coworker/CEO before taking the final decision”
Response Options:
- Keep the conversation going to understand more about the decision-maker so that you can more easily move the sale forward
- Increase your brand awareness by sending great content (brochures/insights reports) to the concerned party and the decision-maker. But never get direct with the decision-maker without the concerned party’s consent as that will break your deal
- You may also find out that the person you’re speaking with DOES actually has influence or even partial purchasing power — a valuable b
- Politely and without hurting their ego, ask if you can set up a joint meeting with both parties.
4. We Are Satisfied!
Objection: “We don’t need this right now, we’re okay with the way things are right now.”
Quick Tip: Be careful not to instantly get into the typical selling mode. Instead have a causal relation and be in touch. Redirect this contact to your marketing team.
Response Options:
- Keep sharing information about their competitors and how they’ve moved on
- Show them your blog posts/case studies of customers who are into a similar business area
- Provide hard data/statistics
- Show examples of positive change within their respective industry to boost their confidence levels
What your goal must be: Never give up with such kind of prospects and always be on top of their head!
5. Occupied Right Now
Objection: “I’m too held up with other priorities. Need to think about it.”
Response Options:
- “Well then, why not we catch up for a call while you are on your drive to the office? How’s Wednesday at 7:30 AM?”
- Suggest a time-limited offer that will expire soon by the time you speak next
- “Why don’t I quickly help you see whether you get real value? I could help you with the trial/implementation and you just have to spend not more than X minutes.”
6. We Have a Vendor in Place
Objection: “Sorry! I’m hiring my friend’s company for our next project.”
Quick Tip: Trying to get in touch with them after you get a response like this might not be successful at all times.
Response options:
- You can respond by saying “ That’s great to hear! Most of the companies are using [your solution] to complement what they’re already doing to give them the best possible chance of making the right marketing decisions for the company
- Be in touch constantly and keep updating them with your new innovations
What must be your goal: Sometimes, a lot of things may be happening behind the scenes that you don’t know about, such as quality control issues, poor customer service, delivery delays, etc? A weak moment can help you get through.
7. Never Heard About You Before
Objection: “How long has your company been in business?”
Quick Tip: Be as transparent as possible. Credibility is critical to moving your prospects to action
Response Options:
- Show testimonials, printed recognition, awards in the form of articles or press releases
- Give them the reason why you’re offering them the product – people will feel more comfortable
- Include your picture – seeing a face with your name helps people trust you more
Other Responses
“Not Interested”
“Leave us alone”
“Unsubscribe”
Don’t annoy them by replying to them. It will make the situation worse. Give it a time frame of 6-9 months and reach them back with a fresh approach!
Conclusion
Here are your Key Takeaways from this article
- View the objection as a question
- Answer it with a question
- Repeat the objection before you answer it
- Take a pause before responding
- Use past experiences and testimonials
- And finally, never argue with the customer.
Next time you have a tough time about sales objections, don’t give in.
I personally feel that you need to be as creative as you can get to handle them, while not taking things personally.
The secret lies in knowing yourself, your customers and your marketplace. Stay equipped with a game plan and face objections head-on with confidence.
In sales, you need to master the talent of asking questions, listening openly and intentionally, and gaining information, instead of just giving!